Baihoo

China’s $50 bln search engine has posted its first loss since going public. A slow economy is not helping. But there are other problems: upstarts like ByteDance are threatening its core business, while new ventures in AI have yet to deliver. Boss Robin Li is running out of time.

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A sign of Baidu is seen on a glass at its booth during the Digital China exhibition in Fuzhou, Fujian province, China May 5, 2019. Picture taken May 5, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. CHINA OUT. - RC1797DDD360

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Context News

Chinese search-engine operator Baidu on May 16 reported a quarterly net loss of 327 million yuan ($47 million), compared to a net profit of 6.7 billion yuan in the same period last year. It said revenue for the three months to March totalled 24.1 billion yuan, an increase of 15% from the same period last year.